White accuses Reds of stretching the truth

Date: February 13 2013

Phil Lutton

RINGO STARR is touring Australia but Brumbies coach Jake White has always been a John Lennon man, suggesting Ewen McKenzie is guilty of ''mind games'' as their Super Rugby opener looms on Saturday night.

It all began with a training drill gone wrong at Ballymore late last week, when James Horwill's wretched run of luck with injuries continued.

A fellow player fell on his ankle and his involvement in the opening weekend was immediately in doubt, with the Reds eventually ruling him out on Tuesday morning.

White is having none of it, accusing the Reds of throwing smoke bombs ahead of the first-round meeting at Canberra Stadium and suggesting subterfuge is now standard operating procedure at Ballymore. ''They'll play; they'll all be in,'' White said. ''Last year they said that Quade Cooper got injured in the hotel and wasn't going to run out and then he ended up playing the whole game, [won 13-12 by the Reds in Canberra].

''It's all mind games now. That's the way the Reds operate. They come up with, 'This guy's not available, that guy could play, this guy is sick.' We have to focus on what we want to get right and that's a win in Canberra on Saturday.''

If Super Rugby was after some more fire between the provinces, whose off-field exchanges are usually rated for general consumption, White appears happy to oblige.

McKenzie didn't want to buy into the discussion but said Horwill's injury was genuine and he would most likely be back for the Suncorp Stadium grudge match against the Waratahs on Saturday week. ''As we've done all off-season we've taken a cautious approach with James and his rehab and on this occasion we all agreed it would be best to give him another week on the sideline,'' McKenzie said.

Horwill leaves a sizeable hole in the Reds scrum but more concerning is yet another injury for the captain, who will hand over control to prop James Slipper.

A painful hamstring injury means Horwill hasn't played a game of Super Rugby in nine months and he would have dearly loved to take the field in Canberra before meeting the Waratahs in Queensland's first outing at Suncorp in 2013.

The experienced Adam Wallace-Harrison will likely join Rob Simmons in the Reds' second row against the Brumbies, who will feature the return of Clyde Rathbone and Wallabies openside David Pocock.

Slipper said the Reds were intent on starting the season well after enduring a horrible run with injuries last year, when players in key positions were falling like flies.

Meanwhile, the Brumbies grew in stature under White and missed the finals by a whisker, finishing second in the conference and seventh overall after a cut-throat final round.

''It's hugely important [to start well], '' Slipper said. ''They did have a great year. Everyone saw that, and we were lucky to get on top of them at the very end there.

''Coming into the first round, everyone wants to start well. It's crucial to start a campaign well and we'll be going out this weekend to do that.''

with AAP

This material is subject to copyright and any unauthorised use, copying or mirroring is prohibited.